


Cantina

by baileyjoy3



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Asexual Character, Emo Kylo Ren, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-31
Updated: 2015-12-31
Packaged: 2018-05-10 14:11:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5589124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baileyjoy3/pseuds/baileyjoy3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Rey like Starbucks, Kylo Ren looks like he belongs in HotTopic, and Poe and Finn are just trying to get through finals without any casualties (Finn probably won't make it).</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cantina

**Author's Note:**

> okay so let it be said now: tfa was the first star wars movie ive ever seen. i loved it and i now intend to watch the series. second, i have never written these characters before now! but, i got this idea literally in the theatre and had to write it. so here you go. enjoy my shit au lmao maybe you'll see more of these kiddos in this setting! thanks for reading!
> 
> (big thanks to kendall for beta'ing this for me, you're a doll <3)

It’s one thing to deal with weird people flirting with her at the Starbucks on campus, but it’s another thing when she starts to notice that the same greasy haired guy is serving her coffee everyday. He looks like he should be working in the shadows of HotTopic or Hollister, or some other store in the mall with horrendous lighting so he couldn’t be seen. It wasn’t that he was unattractive per se; but his nose was a bit crooked, his hair looked like it needed a decent wash and cut, and his cheeks and nose were dotted with the still teenage remnants of acne.

The final straw of his attempts to flirt comes on a Friday, one week before finals. She orders her usual, a venti vanilla iced coffee with three shots of espresso—six on days like today when she’s crunched for time and dying to simply make it through the night. “Ben”, his nametag reads, underlined in red, doesn’t even bother to ask her name, simply smiles with too much teeth and bushy eyebrows that lift a bit as his eyes narrow. It’s… unappealing to put it kindly.

For only three letters, he spends a decent amount of time scribbling her name onto the cup. He’s smart, and wraps his hand around it so she can’t see through the clear plastic to the other side and see what he’s writing. She lifts a brow in return and his cheeks tinge a bit red. He blinks bashfully and averts his gaze, clearing his throat as he sets her cup down to be made, adding it to the line of others before her.

The shop isn’t as busy as it usually is, considering most kids are probably too tired or driven to venture out for coffee, or at their homes off campus instead of the library like Rey is. For some reason, she’s always been more comfortable studying here, plus it’s easy for Finn and Poe to come and join her if they so choose.

Rey steps out of the way of the register (after passing Ben her card to pay, with him obviously making their hands touch at the exchange) and toward the pickup counter. Thankfully, with Ben working register, he can’t call her name and withhold her drink from her in a desperate attempt at making conversation.

Or so she thinks. Another employee exits the back room and switches places with Ben, sending him off to help with the increasing line of drinks; placing him in the perfect opportunity to grab up her drink and start on it. She drops her head with a sigh, digging her phone from the messenger bag over her shoulder. It doesn’t take long for her to shoot her group chat with Poe and Finn a text saying she’ll be a few minutes.

“Venti vanilla iced with six shots for Rey?”

She lifts her head from her phone right as the “;)” from Finn dings in, approaching the counter to retrieve her drink. Ben is already smiling, straw in one hand, drink in the other. All she has to do is take it, say thanks, and run. Simple as that.

“Thanks, Ben. They’re always better when you make them.”

The compliment is enough to make him beam and forget about correcting her over his name like he does every time she addresses him—for approximately five seconds.

“What have I told you about that, Rey? Call me Kylo! All my friends do,” he adds with another smile, leaning a bit on the counter now that she’s pried her life juice from his chipped black nails.

This is rude and she knows it, but this has been going for too long. She doesn’t want to be friends with the creepy punk who works at Starbucks, and she definitely doesn’t want to “call him” like he’s so suggested by writing his number in permanent marker on her cup. So, she resigns herself to the fact that this is a necessary evil and says what she’s been thinking since they first interacted.

“We’re not friends, Ben. Thanks for the drink.”

Rey lifts her cup at him before popping the straw between her lips and taking a sip as she turns on a heel, reveling in the shocked expression on his face. It’s nearly sweet enough to combat the bitterness of the espresso she’s currently downing, she thinks, retrieving her phone once more.

She sends another text to Poe and Finn that she has escaped with her coffee and is on her way back to them when the loud crash behind her makes her jump.

“You BITCH!”

Oh, here we go.

Rey turns back, brows downturned, disappointment written over her features as she sips at her drink.

“I’ve been nothing but nice to you!” Ben roars, startling the other customers. The other employees look nervous but none of them seem to have any idea what to do. “I’ve been a perfect gentlemen and you can’t even give me a _chance?!_ ” He looks around for a moment before knocking down a perfectly presented stack of coffee beans. A few of the bags split open as they hit the floor, precious beans spilling all over. Someone will have to clean those up.

“What the fuck is your problem?! Are you even listening to me?! Quit treating me like I’m some fucking stain on your existence and pay attention for once!”

Rey exhales. She probably should have broken the news to him early and avoided the tragedy that is perfectly good coffee beans all over the floor, but hindsight is twenty-twenty.

“I’m not interested, Kylo.”

Maybe using his name will calm him down, but the nonchalance of her voice only seems to enrage him more.

“Oh, so _now_ you can bother to call me that, huh?! Well, you know what, no, fuck you! ‘Not interested’, my ass! You think you’re better than me, huh, is that it? Little Miss. Perfect Rey is too good for poor old _Ben?!_ ” he spits.

“I’m asexual. I’m literally not interested in you.” She pauses as realization floods over his face, the color in his already pale features draining away entirely. “Also, I’m gay. So, I can’t even you give a shot in the romance department; the shot you kind of ruined by calling me a bitch, anyway. But, nice try, though. Definitely in the top ten ways guys have told me off for being myself.”

Ben looks practically miserable now, a mix of rejection and also embarrassment clear on his features. He swallows a bit as the back room’s door creaks open to reveal their manager who sighs and mumbles something about this being the third time this month. Rey raises a brow curiously, taking another sip of her drink.

“I-I’m sorry, honestly, I didn’t—I assumed—“

“It’s what everyone does. Mind if I get back to my friends now?

Ben nods sheepishly and Rey turns to finally head back into the library. She won’t give him a dismissal of his actions because he doesn’t deserve it. People, in her opinion, deserve to learn their lessons, not have their actions excused because they don’t understand. It’s the only way people learn.

“Well there’s our best gal—what took ya so long, sweet cheeks?”

“Kylo Ren,” Rey drawls, setting her bag on the table as she dryly returns Poe’s flirtatious grin.

“Ooh, what happened this time?” Poe encourages, earning a huff from Finn. Poe shushes him and taps the top of his hand.

“He finally went off,” Rey sighs, sitting down and taking a long sip of her drink, exhaling after. “Called me a bitch and everything—the works.”

Poe lets out a low whistle that has Finn twitching, trying to focus on drilling his notes and textbook into his head. “Really now? Give the proper what for? A little one-two with the mind games?”

Rey chuckles and leans toward Finn, resting her chin on his shoulder as he grumbles.

“No, no, nothing like that. He looked genuinely sorry once I told him I literally couldn’t be interested in him. Let the kid off easy and left.” She rubs her chin around on Finn’s shoulder blade, hearing the grumpy noise he emits travel through his chest. “I figured if he tried anything again, grumpy ole Finnie-pie here could take care of him for me.”

“You bet you ass I could,” Finn growls.

Poe and Rey both share a laugh, earning a few looks from other students, but no shouts to keep it down, so they consider themselves safe. Rey pats her friend’s back as she leans away, rolling her shoulders before moving to free her laptop from her bag. Poe, on the other hand, leans in to purse his lips at his boyfriend teasingly. Finn glares for a moment before pushing himself up on his elbows to return the gesture.

With a pat to Finn’s cheek, Poe goes back to his own work. With the company, silence, and her well deserved drink, Rey finally settles herself in for another long night of work.


End file.
